There was a MUD that just opened, for all to see. Providing it's enforced RP, a revered delicacy.

Dark Isles MUD. A home for the roleplayer, a home for the escapist, a home for those needing a new life. And trust me, it will consume your old. With an intriguing world, active and helpful staff, and -really- limitless possibilities, Dark Isles is quickly becoming home for many dedicated roleplayers. I, for one, am content and probably will be for a long while roleplaying there and only there.

With a cataclysm with an unknown cause (Divine punishment? Mortal ploy?) still fresh in the memories of people, the world of Dark Isles precariously sits upon a cliff, one foot over the edge. Demons attempt to push the world into complete anarchy, and at times, it seems they succeed. Yet, pillars of justice and order still remain. Seahaven still stands home to greedy merchants, and Wolfwood still stands as a mystery. Guards hunt thieves, and thieves stalk the night. Yet, what other monsters lurk in the shadows that a city might provide? The Vek'pem Ahrye, Children of the Cursed, bend the shadows to their will, constantly serving their master, the forbidden Eighth God. And that's not all. Murderers, mad scientists, and nobles all have schemes which inadvertently drive destiny in this way or that, towards darkness or light.

*TRPP, the total amount of your gained RPP while you've been playing at Dark Isles. This is used to generally obtain special RP positions, and races, such as the mind-reading Dryth or cursed Vek'pem Ahrye.

*An intricate craft system, linked to an economy which grows by the players.

*15 through 20 players at peak times.

*Intriguing plots ran by staff and players alike, fueled by IC rumors and other such subtle ways of communication.

*Helpful, active, and open staff. A total improvement on the level of roleplay within the MUD, they will support your roleplay as long as it's roleplay.

*Original races such as the Tir, and Skrel'eth.

*Emote-based player vs player combat system for in-depth fighting. No waiting for a storyteller to come and approve your move!

*Automatically handled NPC vs PC fighting, to speeden things up when you know nobody is on the other end.

*Intricate religious opportunities. Follow the Goddess of Death, or join the fold of Cymur and guard those who need guarding, with all the little ploys in between, plus many more factions in the polythiestic society that DArk Isles provides

*Puzzle-like alchemy system. You'll honestly want to spend hours trying to determine what this or that concoction does.

Firstly I want to thank Leech for such a great recommendation - we really appreciate it, especially from a talented new player such as yourself.

Dark Isles is relatively new still in the mudding world, having opened in July 08 after over a year of development. We're working hard to make Dark Isles into an interesting, unique and intricate world to provide a colourful backdrop to the roleplay and story telling the staff and players both enjoy.

To that end, I would like to tell you all about an event coming up soon on the 20th of February: A Masked Ball. The details for which are as follows:

Event: Masquerade Ball

Where: Seahaven Docks

Time: 7PM (PST) Friday, 20th of February, 2009

Info:

So… Morhiag’s gone to the Dark Side. The Night Demons are killing off the city Guard, the Vek are sucking the populace dry and the Darkness is closing in. So what? Is that any reason not to have a little bit of fun? We think not.

To celebrate the Harvest Season and His Royal Highness King Wisdom IV’s birthday we will be holding an outdoor Masquerade Ball at the Seahaven Docks.

For this one day of the year, you can wear anything you want and be anything you want. Throw off your petticoats and heavy floor length dresses and jazz yourself up in silks and satin.

Weapons are to be left at home in favour of drinking, dancing and merriment.

And in short, those details are pretty much a cliff hanger, since so many things might happen. Demon attacks, or some group of murdering thugs holding everyone hostage. I can't even decide (though I am leaning towards demon attacks). Perhaps even a plague! The Masque of Red Death, anyone?

Also, another thing to entice you, the gentle, imaginative player of MUDs, Dark Isles has been growing constantly over the past week, with quite a few new players joining. Just yesterday, there was a peak of almost thirty players.

Just a reminder that the Ball is coming up very soon, Friday the 20th of February at 7pm PST. Don't worry if you can't be there right on the dot as we expect the celebrations and fun to go on for several hours over the night!

For those that haven't tried Dark Isles yet, I encourage you to make that move. We are a very active mud that sees between 20-30 people on at peak times.

We have regular code improvements to the mud, and since the last post there, we have added in this time:

- a new conceal skill, which allows characters to conceal certain types of exits. How good they are at concealing the exits will determine how easy they are for people to find with the search skill.

- a restring command that Trained crafters can use to customise their work.

- upgrades to weather and combat code.

- and lastly, 80% of the new orb based magic system has been completed.